Bar Association awards Dexter student’s artwork

BANGOR — Dexter Regional High School sophomore Rebecca Batron received honorable mention recognition in the Penobscot County Bar Association’s essay/art contest for high school students in the county. Batron shared the honor with Chloe Lawrence of Hampden Academy and the two each were given $25 gift certificates.

About 40 entrants were submitted this year, according to the local bar association. The theme of this year’s Law Day contest was “Miranda: More than Words.” It asked students to consider whether and how the warning issued by police to criminal suspects in custody before being questioned should be changed. It is named for Ernesto Miranda, whose conviction after he was interrogated by Arizona police was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1966.

The bar association has offered scholarships to the contest winners since 1997 in connection with Law Day, which has been celebrated on May 1 since 1958. The day was created by President Dwight D. Eisenhower as a “day of national dedication to the principle of government under law.” During the height of the Cold War, Law Day was counterpoised against May Day as feted in the Soviet Union, according to the American Bar Association, which chooses the theme of the contest.